Adams collapsed at his Big Hill property,near Lorne on the Great Ocean Road,on October 20 and was quietly buried at a private ceremony last Thursday. His decades-long colleague and business partner in AMS,Shane Maguire,did not attend.
A source close to the law firm said staff had uncovered the investment proceeds were not deposited in trust accounts and had instead been funnelled through a Commonwealth Bank account unconnected with the business.
The loss has been estimated at anywhere between $20 million and $100 million,with the Victorian Legal Services Board briefing the Victoria Police fraud squad.
The source said none of the other employees or directors at the law firm knew where the money has gone and were blindsided by the loss. Maguire did not respond to requests for comment.
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The existence of the external bank account is a further blow to investors because if the money was never put in trust it may not be covered by insurance,leaving them out of pocket.
Victims and investigators are now being left to determine how a lawyer at an ordinary suburban legal business could have duped dozens of investors and colleagues for decades. There is no suggestion that any other person at AMS other than Adams is suspected of wrongdoing.